Spotlight

Our ward did a spotlight on Elder Justin Christensen for the November newsletter. Here's what I (his mother) wrote:

Elder Justin Ray Christensen was born April 21, 1992. He is the second of four children. He was born in Salt Lake City and was raised in West Jordan, Salem and American Fork, Utah. 
 

Justin was a rather serious child. He would frequently stand to the side and watch other kids play, studying them. And then, he'd - I don't know, finish studying or something, and then he'd jump in and be just as wild or involved as any of the other kids. He was very serious, but also very imaginative. He had some trouble when he was little with being afraid of the shadows in his room, and when he'd say his prayers, he'd be thankful for all sorts of random things, like door knobs and clouds.
 

Justin started a thing in junior high where he had to give everyone hugs, and he just kept doing that, making friends everywhere he went. He earned his Eagle Scout about a day and a half before his 18th birthday. He did the whole project himself in about 2 weeks, organizing a blood drive with the local Red Cross. During his senior year he spent several months going to the temple weekly and doing baptisms for the dead. He also took 5 years of French. He also took an MATC cullinary arts class that he really loved.

 After high school he had trouble finding a job, or a car that worked. He found himself enrolled for a semester at Snow College, where he made tons more friends and even began teaching the gospel to a troubled roommate. He also tutored French there. While at Snow recruiters talked him into working at Jacob Lake Inn in Arizona, and he spent 9 months working there, making several hundred new friends.

 

Justin was called to serve in the Canada Montreal Mission, French-speaking. He entered the MTC the end of January, 2012, and flew to Canada the end of March. He is now serving in his second area, and he is a district leader, and is training a new missionary. The other 2 companionships in his district are elders who have been in the mission field less time than Justin, and both are also training. 

 Justin has an amazingly positive attitude. Every week is a new opportunity to serve. Every setback is a new opportunity to learn. Every person he meets is his friend. Every missionary he works with has something to teach him. He has a blog (which I update for him) at http://alampthatburneth.blogspot.com .